A team from the Media Council visited Nakuru County as part of efforts to engage National and County Governments in creating a conducive space for media practice and protection of journalists across the country. The team met the Nakuru East Sub-County security committee led by the Nakuru County Deputy Commissioner Eric Wanyonyi.
Mr Wanyonyi commended the Council for its efforts towards fostering working relationships between the media and administrative and security teams across the country. He affirmed his team’s commitment to work with the media to facilitate accuracy in reporting around security, which is a sensitive area.
The meeting was attended by the Nakuru East Sub-county security team; Deputy Subcounty Commander Phanton Analo, DCIO Benson Mutie, Philip Sum from the NIS and Critical Infrastructure Protection Unit (CIPU) Commander Daniel Orinjo. The security chiefs urged the media to uphold integrity and avoid unorthodox ways of obtaining stories and using blackmail to intimidate news sources.
“We would like to see enhanced training of the media to ensure they report accurately in line with the Code of Conduct for the Practice of Journalism in Kenya”, said Mr Wanyonyi. “We are ready to be part of a training that will bring us and the media together. The security teams can train the journalists on safety and security issues that sometimes lead to friction between our teams and the media”, he added.
The administrator urged the media to uphold its duty to the country by reporting objectively, given the powerful role of the media in society.
“Information on security should be handled carefully as misinformed reporting might provoke animosities in the country”, stated the Nakuru East DCIO Mr Mutie.
The security team at the same time encouraged journalists to don safety gear when covering chaotic events like protests and political rallies.
“Media teams should be properly kitted at all times especially during coverage of events that are likely to lead to a breach of peace. We can only know genuine journalists when they have identification cards and press jackets”, noted Nakuru East Deputy Sub-county Commander Mr Analo.
Nakuru MCK Regional Coordinator Jackson Karanja thanked the team for the good relationship with the media in Nakuru East and pledged to engage the team on key matters including training of journalists on safety and security.
The security bosses lauded the Council for opening a regional office in Nakuru and encouraged the Council to hold regular meetings to foster working relations.